Save Tonight
by Kla1987
Summary: Danny's way of saying goodbye to Lacey and Green Grove - set immediately following the mid-season finale. I (still) don't own Twisted, unfortunately. Canon Dacey fic, but plenty of Jo added to the mix- reviews are love!
1. Chapter 1

**AN - Hey guys! Another little something floating around in my head that I thought I'd share. This is an attempt at canon, so feel free to let me know how realistic you felt it is. **

**This one is set immediately following the mid-season finale, presumably after Phoebe drops the bomb on Lacey about the woman from Conn. and Regina. I'm not really sure if it's a one shot or the start of another full length fic - but I'm sure y'all will let me know if you want me to write more. **

**Also, I'll be updating Dangerous later today for those of you that follow it. Thanks for the love - enjoy! - KL**

* * *

Lacey lay in her bed, fully awake, unable to go to sleep after the evening that she'd had. She kept replaying her conversation with Phoebe in her mind over and over again, trying to make sense of it all. It was obvious at this point that someone was framing Danny for Regina's murder; that someone had set him up to take the fall. Judging by the reports on the evening news, whomever it was that was out to get Danny had succeeded. The police had found a "murder weapon" in the lake with Danny's fingerprints and Regina's blood on it, and now Danny was a wanted man. The idea that a "wooden baton" (as the reporters had phrased it), an organic object, had been able to yield so much evidence after being submerged in water for several weeks was dubious at best, and Lacey wondered why the police force seemed so determined to pin this on Danny. Chief Masterson had seemed like he believed Danny was innocent after they gave him the information they'd found on Vikram and his connection with Regina, but it was obvious now that whatever faith the chief might have had in them in the past was long gone now.

Lacey exhaled loudly and turned on her side, shifting again in a vain effort to find a comfortable enough position to rest. It was approaching midnight, and it had been a very long day – yet, she just couldn't get her mind to stop racing. She was worried about Danny, especially. Even though they'd broken up, she couldn't deny that she still cared for him deeply. She was terrified to think of him out there somewhere on his own (the news report had also said that the suspect was at large), and even more terrified to think of what might happen to him if (when) the police caught up to him. She knew that the trauma of the juvenile detention experience had changed Danny irrevocably, and that he would sooner die than go to actual prison. She shuddered at the thought of that, flipping again to lay on her stomach as her phone buzzed, indicating that she had a text message.

She grabbed her phone and clicked it on, looking puzzled. The number on the message was one that she didn't recognize, but she opened the message anyway.

"_**Meet me at the fort in 20… please**_"

Lacey furrowed her brow. No one knew about the fort aside from Danny, Jo, and herself. Who was this person that was messaging her in the middle of the night to come to their secret hideout? She messaged back a question mark, indicating that she didn't understand, and waited for a response. Sure enough, not even a minute later, she received another message.

"_**Please just come, Lace. I just need to see you for a few minutes**_."

Lace – only one person called her that. Lacey sighed to herself as she got out of bed and shrugged on some jeans and a hoodie. Everything about this seemed like a very bad idea, but she'd be lying to herself if she said she didn't want to see him again. And given what had gone on tonight, she understood that this might be her last chance to see him for a very long time – maybe ever.

She snuck down the stairs and out to her car, careful not to wake her mother or her sister. She eased her silver Jetta out of the driveway in neutral, and waited until she was on the street and facing away from the house before turning on her headlights. She drove the few blocks to the park, leaving her car there and opting to walk the rest of the way. It seemed like a good idea – there were so many officers out tonight, and she didn't want to risk bringing attention to Danny by driving her car any closer to where he was. She zipped her hoodie, pulling it tightly around her before heading out on foot toward the fort.

After several more minutes of walking, Lacey approached the fort and noted that he was already inside. He'd started a fire in the pit they'd made as kids and he was sitting in front of it now. She hesitated a moment, taking in his image before making herself known. He looked so tired and defeated, with slumped shoulders and mussed hair that he nervously raked his fingers through every few minutes. Even in his brokenness, though, she couldn't help but think how beautiful he was, and she wanted nothing more than to wrap her arms around him right then and make everything okay. Instead though, she hung back in usual Lacey fashion, clearing her throat discreetly to get his attention.

His head immediately turned in her direction and he hopped up on his feet, dusting the ashes of whatever he'd been burning off on his pants before walking over to her.

"You came," he said, staring at her as if he was trying to determine if she was really there, not quite wanting to let himself believe that she still cared about him.

"Of course I came," she said tentatively. "Did you think that I wouldn't?"

"I just… after everything with Jo and at the diner and then the news and… I wasn't sure you'd want to see me," he stammered, looking around nervously, running his hands through his hair again.

"Danny, about what happened at the diner, I…" but he cut her off before she could finish her apology.

"It's okay, Lace – I understand. I don't want to talk about all of that tonight."

"I know but just… I need you to tell me what's going on Danny. What are you still doing in town, and what are you planning to do next? You can't stay here at the fort forever, eventually they will find you and then… and then what happens?" Lacey felt the tears welling up in her eyes and she fought valiantly to keep them at bay. She didn't want to cry in front of him but the gravity of the situation was just a little too much right now.

"Lacey, I know you need answers, and I'll give them to you, I promise. But for now, can we just be normal for a few minutes? Please, can I just have one night with you where we aren't worried about the police or dead aunts and best friends and tacky necklaces and… can we just be Danny and Lacey tonight?"

She wanted to push further and question more, but the look in his eyes let her know that this was something that he really needed, so she quietly nodded her head and made her way over to the fire. She saw as she got there that he'd prepared for her, setting out a warm blanket and wine and soft music. She sat down on the blanket, pulling him down next to her. She watched as he poured them each a glass of the expensive red Bordeaux that he'd swiped from his mom's wine cellar before making his escape, and then settled back into his chest as he wrapped his arms around her. They sipped in silence, watching the flames flickering from the fire and listening to each other breathing. It was strangely pleasant, just being in each other's company, and for the moment neither of them could think of any place they'd rather be.

After a long while, Lacey finally began to tire. Danny propped the two of them up on pillows that he'd produced magically as if from nowhere, and covered them with another fluffy blanket. He held her in his arms throughout the night, stroking her hair and studying her face as she slept, not wanting to miss a thing.

As the sun finally began to rise, eeking out just the barest hints of dawn in the sky, Danny knew that it was time for him to go. He shifted her from his arms and enveloped her in pillows, making sure she would stay warm until she woke. He stared at her for a few more minutes, memorizing every feature of her beautiful face before preparing his things to leave.

Lacey woke a few hours later, blissfully unaware (for a few minutes at least) that anything was wrong in her world. She reached for Danny before opening her eyes, but her hand only touched a folded piece of paper instead. She jolted up and looked around, feeling bereft as she realized she was alone. She glanced over at his pillows, finding the note that he'd left her and tearing it open to read what was inside. The tears she'd been holding back finally streamed down her face as she read what he'd written to her. He told her the truth about everything, just as he'd promised, and more.

… _I never wanted to come back her, Lacey, after everything that happened. When mom told me we were coming back to Green Grove, I just knew that this would be the worst thing I'd ever been through (outside of the whole Aunt Tara thing, of course). And truthfully, it has sucked a lot. _

_But you've been the one bright spot that I've had since I've been home – you are the thing that makes this place feel like home to me, even though everyone else hates me. I don't want to leave now, because I don't want to leave you. Even though I know I lied and you had every right to break up with me, I want you to know how special and important you are to me. Lacey, you're everything to me. _

_I hope when this is all over I'll get to see you again. But even if it doesn't turn out that way, you should know that I love you, Lacey – I always have and I always will. _

_You can contact me on the burner phone if you need me – I'm missing you already._

_Yours, _

_Danny_

Lacey allowed herself one more good cry before composing herself and heading back to the Jetta. She was determined to make this right, for Danny, for Regina, and for herself. Whoever had killed Regina wasn't going to get away with it – she would see to that.

As she walked back to her car, she called the one number she'd been avoiding for days, unsure of what the reception would be but knowing that she needed the other girl's help. The phone rang several times before a groggy and disoriented voice appeared on the other end, "Hello?"

"Jo, get out of bed – I'm coming over."


	2. Chapter 2

**AN – Hey guys! So, first off, thanks for the reads and reviews. I appreciate everyone who took the time to give me some feedback – I feel that peer review is one of the best tools a writer has at his/her disposal to get better at what he/she does. For those of you who like the story thus far, I'm glad that you do, and I'm planning on continuing it since it seems to have had a (mostly) positive response.**

**I had two Guest reviewers, though, who didn't like it as much, because they felt it had been done enough times already. I couldn't respond to you guys individually to address your concerns, but I did want to say something on the off chance you decide to come back and read the next chapter (or for anyone else who starts reading and thinks/feels that same way).**

**First thing- I appreciate your feedback, too. I'm really not offended, and I value constructive criticism as much as I do positive reviews. I agree that sometimes the writing in "after-finale" fics can become a bit tired, because it seems like they always start in the same place. That, however, is one of the challenges of writing in canon. When you're trying to stay true to the characteristics and world that the creators have already given us, you are kind of forced to continue your story in the next most logical progression. That, in my opinion, is why you see so many of these stories starting with "Danny runs away but stops to see Lacey first and she believes he didn't kill Regina and they go all Scooby to find the real killer, sometimes with Jo and Rico mixed in" – maybe it is over done, but really, what else is Danny going to do at this point? It makes no sense to start in any other direction.**

**Also, usually if you read past the first couple of chapters, the authors are able to move past the standard start and develop their own twist on how things turn out. That's what I'm planning for this one, and I hope that you guys like it. Moreover, though, this fic is a challenge for myself personally, because I pretty much never write in canon (making things up according to how I feel is much easier than actually trying to make it realistic within the Twisted universe). Canon is a challenge, so cut the authors who attempt is some slack – the quality of the writing and storyline is (to me anyway) what's important. **

**Last thing – there's always AU stories. If you look at my author page, pretty much every other story that I've written is AU, so feel free to browse for something you might find interesting. I love reading AUs, and I would recommend anything by one of the following authors as well if you're looking for something different: **_**Blockbusterism**_**, **_**TwistedHopelessRomantic**_**. **_**Conversations of a Wanderer**_**, **_**TwistedArt**_** – I'm sure there are more that I'm forgetting, but all of them have really good AU stories for you to sink your teeth into. **

**Whew! Okay – that was a little longer than I expected (lol) – this is why I prefer to just PM. Anyway, without further ado, here is your next (extremely long) chapter!**

* * *

Jo was awoken again some time later to the sound of incessant banging on her front door. She grumbled mild expletives as she dragged herself out of bed and made her way down stairs. She vaguely remembered Lacey calling her earlier, but was still none too happy to see the girl.

"What do you want, Lacey?" Jo said, narrowing her eyes.

"Good morning to you, too, Sunshine," Lacey retorted sarcastically as she stepped past Jo and into her home.

Jo let out a dramatic sigh. "Lacey, seriously, what do you want. Why are you here – at my house – at six am – on a Saturday?"

Lacey turned, studying the other girl for a moment before responding, "I'm here to talk to you about Danny."

Before she could say another word, Jo's hands were up, effectively stopping her. "Listen Lacey, I'm not interested in talking about you and your boyfriend right now. He picked you, I get it. I can't say I'm happy with that but whatever, I'll survive somehow. In the mean time I am not going to talk you through whatever drama of the day is going on, just because your 'cool friends' aren't talking to you."

Lacey rolled her eyes at Jo's theatrics, nettled as she started to continue what she'd been saying before.

"Cut the drama queen crap, Jo. You're not a victim here. You and I weren't friends, really, and I don't owe you an explanation about who I am or am not dating. Danny and I getting together wasn't any of your business then, and it still isn't now. I've already apologized to you for hurting your feelings, and I'm not going to keep doing it. Also, for your information, I'm not here to talk to you about Danny and I hooking up, I'm here to talk to you about helping me clear him for Regina's murder. Now, either you can help me or not – that's up to you. But what you won't do is continue to hold it over my head like I did something wrong because the boy you like likes me. This isn't third grade – get over yourself."

Jo stared at Lacey dumbfounded, absorbing her words. She could continue to argue that she was upset about them hiding the relationship from her, but even in her anger, she had to admit that what Lacey'd said was the truth. It wasn't her business, and she and Lacey weren't friends like that anymore. Her anger at the situation stemmed from how unfair it all seemed. Why did Miss Perfect get the guy? Jo had been there for him when Lacey wouldn't even look his way, wouldn't even acknowledge that he existed to her friends. Jo was the one who was convinced of his innocence all along… and he still picked Lacey. Going over it all in her head only served to make her angry again, but as mad as she (still) was at both of them, she didn't want to see Danny go away again.

"Fine," Jo said, exhaling loudly, "but I don't really know what you want me to do. I mean, we gave my dad the envelope and told him everything we know. He said he's looking for another suspect now anyway – what more can we do at this point?"

Lacey studied Jo for a moment, trying to determine if she was serious. Could she really not know what happened? "Jo, where have you been between last night and today? Are you seriously telling me you don't know what's going on?"

Jo's cheeks reddened slightly as she thought back to the night before. She'd gone back to Tyler's, giving him her virginity like an idiot, all because she was mad at Danny. After that, she'd come home only to endure a confession of love from Rico and then she went to hide in her room, swiping a couple of Xanax from her mom's medicine cabinet and going to sleep as quickly as she could to escape any more drama for the day. Of course, she couldn't tell Lacey that, so instead she just said, "No, I have no idea what's going on. Please, Lacey, enlighten me."

Lacey rolled her eyes again – she'd had about all she could take of bitchy, morose Jo. "They found the murder weapon last night… with Danny's fingerprints on it. He's on the run, but the police are looking for him."

"WHAT?!" Jo exclaimed, eyes widening as she stared at the other girl in shock. "What do you mean 'they found the murder weapon'? Who? Where? How? What?"

It took Lacey a few minutes to calm Jo down, and then she explained everything that she knew. She told her about having watched the news, and about the suspicious manner in which they'd discovered the so-called "murder weapon". She also filled her in on what Phoebe had told her about Regina being assaulted by someone from Connecticut, but she left out the part about spending the night with Danny the evening before, deciding that information would only serve to put Jo back on her guard. She also neglected to tell Jo about the letter that Danny'd left with her that morning before he disappeared, not sure if the revelations he'd provided about Tara and what he needed to "protect" Jo from would hurt her more. Lacey herself had been dumbfounded when she read what he'd written, but he'd asked her to keep that secret for him, and she decided that she would honor that request as long as possible.

"I can't believe my dad didn't tell me anything about this," Jo said, falling back onto her couch and bringing her hands to her head. Lacey sat down beside her, leaning back in a similar position of defeat.

"I know… maybe he was trying to protect you or something. I'm not really sure. But what I do know is that we need to protect Danny now." Jo looked at Lacey suspiciously for a moment, and the other girl continued, "You and I both know he didn't do this Jo. Your dad had that lake combed three times looking for that necklace – how in the world could the search team have found that tiny piece of jewelry, but miss a big wooden stick with blood and fingerprints on it? How do blood and hair samples and fingerprints even survive on a wooden stick that's buried under water for weeks? More importantly, Danny's already killed someone once. Do you really think that he'd have been so careless to throw away a weapon with blood and his fingerprints still on it? I'm not half as smart as Danny is about this kind of thing, but even I know the safest thing he could have done with that stick would be to burn it. It's obvious that someone is setting him up here – we just need to figure out who and why."

As much as Jo hated to admit it, she knew that what Lacey was saying was right. There was no way Danny would have done something so careless to let himself get caught, even if he had committed the murder. There was clearly something else going on here, but she knew that the police weren't going to bother with finding out what it was.

"Okay, you win. I'll meet you at the library at 10:00 and we will come up with a game plan."

Lacey smiled genuinely at Jo for what felt like the first time in years. "Thank you Jo, I knew you'd come through. I'm gonna head home now, see you in a couple of hours."

* * *

Lacey stopped at a gas station on her way home, trying to clear her head of all the tension she felt. She was worried about Danny, where and how he was doing, and it was driving her crazy that she hadn't heard from him. As she walked inside the store to pay for her fuel, she noticed a display for pre-paid cell phones near the register. She picked one up, studying it curiously as she made her way to the front of the line.

"How much are these?" she asked the cashier as she came up to the counter.

"That one?" he replied, his Middle Eastern accent thick. "For you, $35."

Lacey looked down at the cash in her hand. She had $50 on her, and she definitely didn't want to use her debit card to make the purchase, but she needed that phone.

"Okay, give me the phone and $10 worth of minutes please. I'm paying for that in cash. Also, I need $20 on pump three, but I'll use my card to pay for that, and these snacks."

The cashier rung up her purchases and authorized her pump to dispense the fuel to her. As she was putting the bag with the phone into her car, she noticed a police cruiser ride up beside her. Inside was Chief Masterson and a female officer whom Lacey had never seen before. Lacey stowed her purchase underneath her passenger seat, and walked around the car to begin pumping her gas.

"Good morning Chief," she smiled as she removed the cap from her fuel tank and slid the nozzle into the hole.

"Good morning, Lacey," Kyle replied, getting out of the car with his partner and walking over to her. Lacey felt a little nervous from the close proximity of the two law enforcement officials, but kept a cool demeanor as she continued what she was doing.

"What can I do for you today, sir?" she asked, giving them both her best smile.

"I just wanted to ask you whether or not you'd seen Danny around?" Kyle began, studying her closely for any sign that she may be lying.

"Umm… no sir, I can't say that I have," Lacey lied smoothly. "We kind of got in an argument last night at Johnny Cakes and then he left. I haven't seen or heard from him since then. Why, is something wrong?"

Kyle started to speak, but his associate beat him to the punch. "Danny Desai is wanted for the murder of Regina Crane. We found the weapon he used to kill Regina last night, and are now launching a full on manhunt to determine his whereabouts. We will find him, and anyone who is caught helping him will be charged as an accomplice after the fact. Now, is there anything you'd like to tell us, Lacey?"

Lacey allowed a flash of anger to cloud her face momentarily, before masking it again with calm. "Look- I'm sorry – who are you?"

Kyle cut in, introducing his partner and attempting to diffuse the tense situation, "Lacey, this is Detective Marilyn Rossi. The mayor has brought her in from another jurisdiction to help us wrap up this case."

Lacey studied the woman with cool indifference. She didn't get a good feeling about this woman, and she definitely didn't appreciate the way she'd spoken to her before. Still, she knew putting herself any higher on the police's radar wouldn't bode well for the private investigation that she and Jo were planning to commence later that morning, so she decided it was best to back down – for now.

"Nice to meet you, Detective. I'm sorry, Chief, but I really don't have any information on Danny. He and I haven't really been getting along lately, and like I said, I haven't seen him since our fight last night at Johnny Cakes."

"Can anyone verify what you're saying, Miss Porter?" Marilyn asked, sure that if she pressed the girl enough that she would crack. She didn't know Lacey was the queen of the pretenders – putting on a front of indifference was second nature to the teen.

"Sure," Lacey shrugged, turning her attention back to the fuel nozzle as she put it back on its handle and replaced her gas cap. "The entire soccer team was there last night for some sort of celebration party, as well as about half the popular kids at school. They all saw the whole thing – it wasn't like we were quiet."

"Interesting," Marilyn said, still not convinced that Lacey was telling the truth, "So, if we talk to the kids that were there last night, they'll tell us they saw you having a fight with Danny?"

"I guess they will," Lacey said, leaning against her car as she faced the two officers. "I mean, it was a really big scene that I made. Actually, I made a couple of big scenes last night." Lacey figured it was in her best interest to go ahead and tell them about her fight with Archie as well, especially if they planned on talking to any of the other kids from the diner.

"What else happened?" Kyle asked.

"I got into an argument with Archie, too. Cole went up to him and accused him of being behind the poisoning, and I backed him up. Archie told me after my fight with Danny that he and Scott Hodgins were the ones who really poisoned Cole so they could get Danny off the team. I wasn't in the mood to defend Danny at that point, but Cole is my friend, and I thought he should know the truth. It's hard to trust someone who is supposed to be playing on the same team as you when you know they're lying." She said, looking pointedly at Marilyn as she did so.

"Anyway, Archie called me a bitch and said my time as the Queen B was through. I told him and Sarita both where they could go, and I left."

"Where did you go after that?" Kyle asked, interest piqued by this point.

"I went home, Chief. I was in my room about an hour later when Phoebe came by. She and I bonded for a bit over pictures of us with Regina and some other shots from a vacation we took together last summer, and then I went to bed."

"Are you sure that's all that happened?" Marilyn pressed, wanting to push the girl into giving them more information.

"Yeah, look, am I under arrest or something? Because if you guys are going to keep asking me questions, I should probably call my mom. I am 16, after all." She looked between the two cops, focusing most of her attention on Marilyn as she said it.

"No Lacey, you're not under arrest or anything. I just wanted to get a good read on where you are as far as Danny is concerned. We want to bring him in as safely and quickly as possible, so we are just following every possible lead," Kyle said, backing off from the girl so as to avoid a larger confrontation.

"Yeah, I understand Chief," Lacey said nonchalantly as she prepared to get back into her car. "I wish I could be more help, but after our fight last night, I'm pretty sure I'm the last person Danny will be calling on any time soon."

"Okay Lacey, if you think of anything else, please feel free to give me a call down at the station," Kyle said as he and Marilyn started walking back to the crusier.

Lacey hopped back into her car, letting go a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. She grabbed the bag from underneath her passenger seat and went to take what's inside. Suddenly she looked up and noticed the police were still sitting there, looking at her expectantly. It took her a second to realize Chief Masterson had his window down as if he wanted to talk to her. She reached over to the passenger door and rolled the glass down.

"Yes sir?"

"Marilyn wanted to ask you one more question, Lacey," Kyle said, looking uncomfortable.

"Sure, what is it?" Lacey replied, careful to keep the bag she was rummaging through out of sight.

"What'd you buy in the store?" Marilyn said, leaning forward so that Lacey could see her around Kyle's head.

'Oh," Lacey said, smiling, "just a soda and some Skittles. I got a Cherry Lime Rickey," she said, holding the large can up for both of them to see. "You should try it- it's my favorite!"

Marilyn looked visibly disappointed as she smiled at the girl, responding only, "Thanks for the recommendation, I'll have to get one next time I'm in the store."

Lacey nodded her head a little, turning to put on her seatbelt.

"Thanks, Lacey," Kyle said, his voice now tinged with irritation at the woman next to him, "you have a good day."

With that, Lacey watched as the two officers rode off. She put on her seatbelt and cranked her car, taking a moment to relax and gather herself before driving away herself. She wasn't sure what had just happened, but she definitely didn't like it. She replayed the strange scene in her mind over and over again as she made her way home, trying to pick up on what had made her so uncomfortable. She finally concluded that it was Marilyn. The woman made her uneasy, and not just because she was an officer who was after Danny. The way she'd spoken to Lacey about catching him seemed so intense, almost as if it was personal. Lacey couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to Marilyn that what appeared, and she made a mental note to ask Jo about her when they met later.

Finally at home, Lacey parked her car and slipped into the house, trying not to wake anyone up as she did. She got to her room, closing the door behind her. She quickly gathered her things to take a quick shower, and then she planned on laying down for a bit to clear her mind before she met with Jo. So much was going on – she just hoped that she and Jo weren't in over their heads trying to prove Danny's innocence.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN – Okay, once again with the anonymous bad reviews. I'm always amused that people leave bad comments signed in as guests, which disallows for any discussion on the matter. If you aren't interested in hearing anything I have to say, why bother engaging me in the first place?**

**I actually got one bad review last night that did irritate me a little, but not because they don't like my story. Frankly, I don't care if you like my story or not – no one's forcing you to read it. If you don't find it interesting, cool. I'm not offended (about that), but please remember you're here by your own volition. **

**What I did find offensive about the comment, though, was the implication that I'd stolen someone else's idea(s?) about how it should play out. I'll admit that I read a great deal of fanfic, both in-canon and AU. However, the fact that you seem to think I'm not original enough to come up with my own storyline, and then would go further to say that I'm insulting the original authors by jacking their ish kinda grinds my gears. **

**As an actual published author in real life, I take a great deal of pride in the time and effort that I put into my work. Even though writing these fics is just a fun pastime for me, I still make a conscious effort to provide those who do care to read what I've come up with quality, unique product. How in two chapters you can say that I've ripped off someone else I'm not really sure (especially because the story hasn't even really gotten started yet). Not liking what I write is one thing – I can handle that. Questioning my integrity as a writer overall is something else entirely, and something I don't care to deal with.**

**I'm going to keep going with the story, and I won't be responding to any more negative reviews, but I did want to put that out there because it was on my mind. Believe it or not, the writers of these stories are actual people with actual feelings. You should think about that when you're leaving comments that walk the line of becoming pretty personal (for me, calling my integrity into question is very much personal). **

**Also, can someone please take a minute to point me to one of these "five" other fics that seem to start out the same way as this one? Because seriously guys, I came up with the first chapter of this while listening to Eagle Eye Cherry on my way to work the other day and have pretty much just been winging it from there. I haven't seen anything else like it here on FF, but that doesn't mean it isn't there. Also, I don't do the whole tumblr thing, so if it isn't on this site, I definitely haven't seen it. If I'm mimicking someone, please let me know, because I mean it when I say I'm not jacking anyone intentionally.**

*******_**builds a bridge and gets over it**_*******

**Okay, now that that's out of the way – on to our next chapter!**

* * *

Lacey arrived at the library just after 10:00 am. She immediately spotted Jo perched on one of the benches near the circulation desk. Jo stood up as Lacey walked over to where she had been sitting, and the two exchanged an awkward greeting before deciding to move to one of the research rooms toward the back of the first floor to get started.

Closing the door to bar themselves inside the small space, the two girls sat across from one another at the provided table. Neither said anything for a moment; instead the just looked at each other, neither really knowing where to begin.

Surprisingly, it was Jo who spoke first this time. "Look, Lacey – I'm sorry for being such a bitch to you the last few days. I understand your attraction to Danny, and I'm not even really mad at you for going out with him. I guess I was just… it just hurt my feelings because I thought we could have had something, but… Anyway, that isn't important now. I'm not really sure you and me are going to be besties again anytime soon, but if we're going to be working together I figured it might be a good idea to clear the air so… yeah."

Lacey gave Jo a small smile, responding, "Thanks for that, Jo. I appreciate your effort, and I agree, this isn't about us anymore, it's about Danny. For what it's worth, he wanted to tell you from the beginning, but I wouldn't let him. I was afraid of how people would react if they found out… now I know."

Images flashed through Lacey's mind of the ridicule she'd received the previous week at school as a result of the sex-tape fiasco. It had only been a couple of days since all of that happened, and the wounds were still fresh to her. She knew things would only get worse before they got better, though, especially now that there was an all out manhunt for Danny. It was one of the many times over the last few months that she wished Regina were here. Regina was the one person who Lacey could always count on to never judge her or make her feel bad for not living up to the standard of perfection that everyone else seemed to expect from her. Their friendship had been a complete no-judgment zone, and Lacey could really use that support right about now. Unfortunately though, she didn't have Regina anymore, and she didn't have Danny either. The Regina part of that couldn't be fixed, but maybe she could save Danny. She looked at Jo again and smile, saying "Okay Masterson, enough of the schmaltzy crap – how are we going to do this?"

The girls spent the rest of the morning organizing their information and trying to come up with a plan of action. They had collected a great deal of intel since the murder, each working in her own way to clear Danny's name. Now they could consolidate what they'd gathered, omitting information that was redundant and taking a fresh look at unique things each brought to the table. By 2:00 the girls felt that they had a strong starting position, dividing their research areas into three distinct categories: Marna, Inc., Vikram Desai, and Regina Crane herself. They also started a tentative list of alternative suspects, but only had a few names on it this early in the game.

After four hours of pouring over the information in front of them, categorizing everything accordingly, Lacey heard a low rumble come from the other side of the table.

"Hungry much?" she giggled, enjoying the embarrassed look on Jo's face as her stomach growled again.

"Actually, since you mention it, yes I am," Jo replied, turning her nose up in faux haughtiness. "Wanna break for awhile and head over to Johnny Cakes for some food?"

"Ummm…" Lacey hesitated slightly, not sure if eating at the popular diner on Saturday afternoon was the best decision for her. She'd planned on laying low for a few days in order to avoid the incessant stares and whispers that seemed to follow her everywhere she went lately. Sensing her apprehension, Jo quickly gave her an out.

"Look, I get it. I know I'm not part of your entourage, so it's cool. We can be library friends and you can go back to acting like you don't know me in public." The defensiveness was evident in her voice and she looked down, avoiding Lacey's gaze. For a few minutes there it seemed like they might be on their way to achieving some sort of reconciliation, but it was short-lived. Jo reminded herself that befriending Lacey again wasn't her priority here anyway – the two girls simply shared the same goal. Danny was, as always, their common denominator.

"Jo it isn't that," Lacey said, regretting that her hesitation hurt Jo's feelings (again). "It's just that… I don't feel up to getting stared at and called names today. I'd like to get through at least one day without hearing the words 'whore' or 'socio-slut' attached to my name, you know?"

Jo studied Lacey's face for a moment, trying to decide whether or not she believed her. Finally she decided the other girl was probably telling the truth. "Fine," she said, "but you can't hide away forever Lacey. Eventually you're going to have to face them, and you may as well do it sooner than later. But if you really don't want to go then we can head back to my house – I'm sure mom wouldn't mind pulling together something."

Lacey seemed more agreeable with that idea, and so the two girls gathered their work and carefully put it in their bags to leave. They piled into Lacey's Jetta and headed over to the Mastersons' place.

* * *

Tess was relatively surprised when Jo showed up at home with Lacey in tow, but didn't comment as she made the two girls a lunch of deli sandwiches and chips. She even got a smile out of Lacey as she sat the plate in front of her, complete with extra pickles, just as she'd always liked it as a kid. She was glad that the two girls were spending time together, and hoped that they would somehow figure out how to rebuild their friendship. After a few more minutes of playing the doting mother, Tess excused herself to her studio and left the girls to their own devices in the kitchen.

"Sooo," Jo started after she was sure her mother was safely in the garage and out of earshot, "You mind if I ask you something?"

"Nah," Lacey said, happily munching away on the extra helping of kosher midgets Tess had so kindly provided for her, "go ahead."

"What was it like kissing him?"

Lacey nearly choked on the pickle in her mouth. Of course that was the question Jo wanted to ask her – how had she not seen that coming? She coughed a little, clearing her throat and racking her brain for an acceptable response.

"Umm… it was good?" she answered tentatively, eyeing the other girl as she spoke.

Jo snorted, looking at Lacey disapprovingly. "Seriously, that's all you have to say is 'it was good'? I got that much from your little video, Lacey. What I wanted to know was…" but she stopped speaking, kicking herself mentally as she watched Lacey's face blanche at the mention of the video. "_Good job Masterson_" she thought to herself as she scrambled to stammer out an apology to the other girl.

"Oh God, Lacey, I didn't mean it like that. God, I'm so stupid, I shouldn't have, I mean… ugh! Sorry…"

But Lacey regained her composure, taking a deep breath before resuming her pickle munching. "No, Jo, it's cool. I guess I need to get used to that – everyone saw that video so it isn't like it'll be going away any time soon."

"I know but…" Jo started before Lacey cut her off again.

"No seriously don't worry about it. It's fine. And to answer your question, yeah, he's an amazing kisser. I was actually kind of surprised at that considering he spent so long locked up in juvie, but I guess they must have had co-ed functions from time to time, or maybe he's just a natural… not sure. But I didn't have to teach him anything – it was just like the first time he kissed me… we just fit, you know? It felt like I'd been holding my breath for longer than I could remember, but when we kissed, suddenly I could breathe again. It was intoxicating and scary and exciting all at the same time…"

Lacey was momentarily lost in her reverie, remembering that first kiss outside the Fall Festival. She hadn't been planning on kissing him that night, but when he'd challenged her about her feelings for him she just couldn't help it. Danny had this way of looking at her like he could see straight through all of her walls – it was disarming, but she couldn't deny that she liked it.

"Earth to Lacey," Jo said, waving a potato chip in front of her face to bring her back to their conversation. "Where'd you go there? Was it really that good?"

Lacey blushed slightly and went back to her pickles, but Jo had other questions for her.

"So, did you guys ever like… you know, go all the way?"

Lacey laughed, responding, "Wow, Jo, you really know how to make a conversation awkward don't you? And what the hell is 'go all the way'? This isn't Grease – who says that?"

Jo just looked at her, doing her best to contain her own laughter as she crossed her arms and tapped her foot. "I'm waiting," she said with mock impatience.

Lacey sighed, calming her laughing fit. "No, Jo we didn't. I mean there were a couple of times we were close but… I've never done that with anyone before…" She trailed off, noticing that Jo was looking with her in disbelief. "What?" she asked, suddenly self-conscious.

"No – Nothing," Jo stammered, coming back to herself. "I just figured you… I mean you of all people – never? Not even with Archie?"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean, Jo? 'Me of all people'?" Lacey's demeanor had changed from playful to defensive just that quickly, and Jo didn't know how to react. She sighed, taking a deep breath before responding.

"Lacey that isn't what I meant. I don't think you're some sort of slut, I just meant I was surprised. You and Archie were together for a really long time, and that video of you and Danny seemed pretty intense. But I'm not judging you, I guess I just kind of figured… well why not?"

Lacey, still miffed but slightly less defensive at this point, retorted, "Because I didn't want to. I wasn't ready with Archie and with Danny… it just wasn't the right time. There was always too much going on, all the secrecy hanging over our heads. I mean, can you imagine – what if he did kill Regina? I don't think he did, but just think about it. What if I gave myself to him like that and then he goes to prison and abandons me all over again? There was just too much uncertainty with Danny – so I didn't."

Jo understood what Lacey meant, especially the part about not being ready. She'd been regretting sleeping with Tyler every minute since it happened, and she didn't really know how to deal with it. She wanted to talk about it, but she didn't have anyone to go to any more. After Rico's confession she knew telling him would only hurt him, and the thought of telling her mother mortified her. Maybe Lacey would understand though…

"I know what you mean, Lacey… I mean, about not being ready. I slept with Tyler last night and now I just feel… I don't know, weird I guess."

Lacey's eyes grew wide as she absorbed what Jo had just confessed. "Wait – what? You slept with Tyler? How did that even happen?"

Jo looked down, slightly ashamed as she told Lacey about going to Tyler's house to discuss the movie and feeling pretty alienated by his film club friends. She told her about the advances he'd made on her, and how she'd left him there to go meet Danny so she could get her feelings off her chest. She briefly talked about the humiliating conversation she'd had with Danny, glossing over the more embarrassing parts, before going back to Tyler's house.

"It was awful, Lacey. I don't know what I was expecting but that… that definitely wasn't it. And then I came back here and Rico was waiting for me and he made this huge declaration of love to me! Like, who does that? I was completely caught off guard, and it just made me feel that much worse. I'm so stupid."

Lacey got off her stool and walked the few steps to where the other girl was sitting with her head in her hands, the tangled mass of blonde hair forming a curtain around her. Lacey might not know what she was going through exactly, but she'd been the shoulder to cry on after enough "regrets" for Regina and the other girls to know what Jo needed. She wrapped her arms around her former friend and hugged her hard as the other girl cried silently to herself.

After the worst of it was over, Lacey moved back to her stool. No longer interested in her food, she just kind of looked at Jo for awhile, watching the blonde stare off into space. Finally, she spoke.

"So, now that you've gotten that out – what are you going to do about Rico?"

Jo looked at her with red-rimmed eyes, sniffling a little as a small smile came across her face. "I really don't know. I mean, I guess I've been so caught up in Danny that Rico's having a crush on me never even showed up on my radar. What do I even do with that? He's my best friend but… how would that even work with us?"

"How isn't really important right now, Jo," Lacey said gently. "The better question here is whether or not you want something to work between the two of you. Are you interested in him that way? Do you think you could be?"

"I don't know," Jo said again, exasperated. "I mean, Rico is awesome and I know he'll be great for someone but… is he right for me? How do I even look at that fairly?"

"You don't – at least, not right now," Lacey said, getting up to empty her plate and drop it in the sink. "Your emotions are too all over the place to make decisions like that right now. Wait until things calm down a bit, and give yourself some time to come to terms with how you feel about what happened with Danny and Tyler. I'm pretty sure Rico isn't going anywhere, but you owe it to him and to yourself to figure out where your own head is before you start making decisions about the two of you."

"Awww," Jo said, "did we just have a bonding moment?"

"Don't push it, Masterson," Lacey said, cutting her eyes at Jo playfully. "I know you think I'm the dragon lady or whatever, but believe it or not, I can be nice every now and then."

"Yeah, I remember," Jo murmured wistfully, snapping herself out of a daze. "Anyway, enough about my boy problems for the moment – we've got a murder mystery to solve."


	4. Chapter 4

**AN - Here it is, as promised. A little shorter tonight, but there's Dacey fluff, so that counts for something, right?**

* * *

Danny felt the buzzing of his phone vibrating in his pocket, and he reached down to retrieve it. He opened the small silver flip phone, concerned to see both a missed call and a text from an unfamiliar number. He looked around the small restaurant he was sitting in nervously, suddenly paranoid that he was being watched. He'd only given this number to two people – his mother and Lacey – and he was alarmed to think that someone else had somehow obtained it. He didn't want to call the number back, because he knew the phone he was using was untraceable only as long as he wasn't on it. Instead, he opened the message, slightly more relaxed as he read it.

"_**Just letting u know I got a special phone for u – call/text this number if u need something – Lace**_"

He studied the message for a moment, not sure whether or not he should respond. On the one hand, it could be Lacey reaching out to check on him… on the other hand it could be any number of people pretending to be Lacey in an effort to draw him out. After a few moments of quiet deliberation, he decided to test her to make sure it really was Lacey he was talking to.

"_**Tell me something only u and I know**_"

Her response came just a few minutes later. "_**Seriously, Danny? What is this, a bad spy movie?"**_

He didn't reply to that one, just continued waiting for the response to the question he'd asked. He wanted to talk to her, but before he did, he needed to know for sure.

"_**(1 of 2) Once in the third grade, you put a spider in Amber Turner's hair during nap time because I told you that she'd hurt my feelings on the playground. She woke up screaming because it crawled onto her (2 of 2) face, and we couldn't do naptime in the green room for the next week because of it. I kissed you in the fort that afternoon as a reward for protecting me**_"

He smiled, finally relaxing as he closed his eyes at the memory. "_**That was my first kiss**_" he sent.

"_**Mine too**_" she responded, then "_**where r u?"**_

"_**Call me" **_he sent back, suddenly longing to hear a familiar voice. Soon the phone was ringing, and he answered almost immediately. They talked for a few moments, making idle small talk. She didn't mention his note or the fact that he'd left her at the fort alone, two things for which he was grateful. She did, however, tell him that she and Jo were working together to clear his name.

"You and Jo should be careful, Lace. I don't want anything to happen to you because of me," he told her as she outlined their plan of attack for him.

"There are worse things in life than helping someone you love," she said before abruptly correcting herself, "I mean… I didn't mean to… Danny… gah"

He laughed lightly, enjoying her momentary fluster. "It's okay, Lace, we don't have to have that conversation right now." Just the fact that she'd said the words to him at all were enough to make him happy, even though it was obvious she hadn't meant to.

"Yeah well, take care of yourself wherever you are. I'd prefer it if you came home in one piece," she said, attempting to end the conversation on a light note.

"I'll do what I can," he said noncommittally. "In the meantime you and Jo need to be careful."

"How about I promise that we'll be careful if you promise not to get caught?" she said, her words both playful and sincere.

"I'll always come back to you," he promised as they ended the conversation. He didn't realize until he'd said the words how determined he was to keep that promise to her. He sat in his booth a few minutes longer, closing his eyes and imagining her face across from him for a few lingering minutes. Then, once the feeling had passed, he rose from his seat, leaving a few dollars on the table for the waitress before walking back out onto the busy Manhattan sidewalk.

* * *

"_I'll always come back to you_" – the words played over and over again in Lacey's head as she laid in her bed that evening. He'd sounded so convincing when he said it to her, and the determination in his tone was almost enough to convince her that he could keep his word. But she knew that there was much more in the way of him coming back then just his will power – there was also the need to clear him of Regina's murder.

Lacey stared at the ceiling of her bedroom, her thoughts turning to the research that she and Jo had done that afternoon. So far they had been able to determine that Marna, Inc. was a fake real estate investment company, and that Danny's father had been some sort of executive for the company. Looking back into Marna's tax records and annual returns over the last 5-7 years yielded very little in the way of results – it seemed that there was not much more to the company than the flimsy website that came up in the Google search. Still, it had listed a physical address in Connecticut that she and Jo had decided to visit at some point in the next few days, and a "Board of Directors". The board was of particular interest to the girls because it had several names that seemed familiar to them, including Danny's father and a "J. Rollins". Lacey thought that J. Rollins might be James Rollins – the mayor of Green Grove – but she wasn't sure. She'd also done a background check on Marilyn Rossi, running her name through the Spokeo database, but no useful results had turned up. The lack of information on Marilyn had struck Lacey as strange, but she filed it away for later consideration as they'd continued their search. Tomorrow the girls would start looking into Vikram, and into Regina. Lacey wasn't very excited about that last part, but she knew that it was necessary – whatever Regina had been hiding had gotten her killed, and it was important that they find out what it was before Danny went down for a crime she was almost positive by this point that he hadn't committed.

"_Danny_," she thought - there he was again, front and center in her mind. She worried about him so much, unsure of where he was and hoping that he was staying safe and laying low. She reached over into her nightstand, pulling out the note that he'd written her and re-reading it. She skipped over the more personal parts that related to Tara and to Jo, and went straight to the end, where he told her how he felt about her. She read the lines over and over again, committing them to memory. He loved her, he really loved her… and she loved him back. Lacey lay back in wonder as she thought about what that meant. Part of her was terrified about the realization that she was in love with Danny – especially given the circumstances they were facing now. But the other part couldn't help but be excited. Lacey had become an expert at keeping people at arm's length in the time that Danny had been gone. As a result, she had never let herself develop these kinds of deep feelings for anyone. It amazed her that even all the time she had spent with Archie, she'd never felt for him half the things that she felt for Danny. Danny had a way of breaching all of her defenses, of making her enjoy the safety of his arms, even when she knew there was no safety at all there. Something about the way he made her feel let her know that he was worth the risk, worth letting her guard down, letting him in.

She reached under her pillow, pulling out the little prepaid phone she'd bought earlier that day and tapping out his number. She bit her lip, debating whether she ought to call him now. They'd said they would use the phones to communicate only sparingly, so as to avoid detection. There was no emergency, no reason to alarm him but… she wanted to talk to him. In the end though, she settled on another text instead.

"_**Thinking about u**_…"

Simple. Three little words, but she knew that he would understand what she meant by them. She smiled to herself as she heard the light chiming sound, indicating his response.

"_**Right back atcha beautiful – gnite**_"

"Goodnight babe," she whispered, drifting off to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

The next day Lacey and Jo went back to their mission of finding Regina's killer. First they reviewed the information they'd found on Marna the day prior, and then began digging into Vikram Desai. They decided the best place to start was the accident that killed Vikram just a few months before, and that they would work backward from there. They pulled up as much available public information as possible on the accident, but it was mostly just full of information they already knew- Vikram had been sailing on a yacht, he'd been drinking and fallen overboard, and his body was never found. After several days of searching with no results, the police had declared him legally dead and closed the case. Searches for information before he'd died proved to be equally frustrating – aside from the explosive publicity surrounding Tara's death and Danny's subsequent imprisonment, there was virtually no information around on Vikram or his family. Even searches through police records and other public files yielded nothing, not even a speeding ticket.

One thing that the girls were able to find, though, was a listing of real estate holdings in Vikram's name. They were already familiar with the house in Green Grove, as well as the apartment in Connecticut. However, the list contained several more properties that they didn't know about, including an office building that was also in Connecticut, another condo in Boston, and a place in Maine. Lacey cross-checked the address for the office building, satisfied to discover that it matched the address that'd been listed on the website for Marna, Inc. It seemed like some of the pieces of the puzzle were slowly coming together but…

"We need more," Lacey said, slamming her hands down on the keyboard in frustration.

"I know," Jo said. "It seems like every time we find something new, it just makes everything more and more confusing. What do we even have at this point?"

"Well, we know that Vikram was doing something illegal in relation to Marna, and I'm pretty sure that Regina knew about it… but how? How would Regina even have known Vikram at all? And was he the person she was blackmailing?" Lacey took a few minutes to fill Jo in on the conversation that she'd had with Phoebe a few nights before, having forgotten all about it until now.

"Hmm," Jo said," that is weird. Connecticut is coming up a lot lately. My dad's new partner on this case was actually brought in from Connecticut to help him wrap it up quickly."

Lacey's blood ran cold as she listened to Jo. "You mean Marilyn Rossi? She's from Connecticut?"

"Yeah," Jo said, "Dad says the mayor brought her in because he felt Dad wasn't doing a good enough job managing the case. I figured it was an inter-state police investigation now since the blackmail letter came from over the state line. Why? Do you think she has something to do with this?"

"I don't know – maybe," Lacey said, remembering her conversation with the woman the day before. "I don't know what to think now. But I don't think internet searches are going to get us anywhere – we need to do some firsthand investigating."

* * *

Two hours later the girls drove into the small town of Essex, Connecticut. They searched for the address to Marna, finding it as a small building in an alcove off Main Street. The doors to the building were chained and the windows papered, clearly indicating that the company was out of business. Still, the sign atop the building's face still wore the red and gold logo, although the name had since been removed. Lacey and Jo looked at each other in quiet disappointment, frustrated that they'd driven all this way for an empty storefront.

"Let's at least get out and look around," Jo said, "maybe there's still something here we can find."

They exited Lacey's car, walking up to the front of the building where Lacey attempted to peek through the windows while Jo tried unsuccessfully to open the door.

"You do see those chains, right Masterson?" Lacey said jokingly.

"Yeah, I just thought they might be for show – it's pretty clear the rest of this place is. Do you see anything inside?" Jo asked, blowing out a discontented breath.

"Nah, just looks like an empty office," Lacey replied. "Let's check around back and see if there's anything there."

The girls walked to the back of the building, disappointed to only find more locked doors. They did, however, notice a man from the building directly adjacent to Marna taking out trash.

"Excuse me sir," Lacey called, walking over to him, "can you tell me where Marna, Inc. moved to?"

The man looked Lacey over suspiciously, clearly unadjusted to people asking questions about the company. "What are you interested in Marna for, little girl?" he asked brusquely.

"I'm actually looking for the guy that owns it – he's an old friend of my mom's. I'm doing this project in school where we have to shadow people who are into the kind of work that we're interested in, and mom thought since I want to be in real estate, I should talk to him. She said she wasn't sure about the address, so I just looked it up on the website – I guess they haven't updated it yet." Lacey told the lie as convincingly as she could, shrugging her shoulders in emphasis at the end, but the man looked unconvinced.

"You say your mom's a friend of Vik? Well then why doesn't she know that he and his wife closed this place down two or three months ago?"

Lacey held her gaze steady on the man, smiling sheepishly, "Well, my mom doesn't live in town anymore. She moved to Hartford for her job about six months or so ago, so we mostly just stay in contact by phone. I guess she hasn't done that great a job of keeping up with her friends around here. So you say he and Karen closed up shop about three months ago?"

"Marilyn," the old man said, repeating himself when Lacey looked at him questioningly. "Vik's wife's name is Marilyn. Geez, for someone who says you're looking for him, you sure don't know anything about the guy."

Lacey's smile froze on her face, but she tried to stay collected as she listened to the man talking. "I'm sorry, I forgot – his first wife's name was Karen. Gah, that would have been embarrassing! I remember Marilyn – the redhead, right? I think I've met her a couple of times at my mom's business dinners."

"Yeah, that's Marilyn," the old man said, still studying Lacey's face. "Anyway, they aren't here anymore. I don't even know if they're in town still, but I do know that Marna is officially closed for business. Seemed like Vik ran into a little trouble, because they closed the place down in a matter of hours. Haven't seen either of them since. Sorry girlie – looks like you'll need to find someone else to do your little job shadow experiment on."

Lacey let her eyes fall for a moment, giving him the perfect downcast expression before thanking him for his time and asking for his name. She nodded at Jo and the two went back to the car to regroup.

"So, Marilyn is posing as Vikram's wife?" Jo said hesitantly, trying to pull the pieces together, "Marilyn, as in Marilyn Rossi? The lady that's working with my dad. But if she's involved with Vikram, why is she trying to put Danny away?"

"I have no idea," Lacey said, biting her lip and trying to figure out what to do next, "but I'm not really surprised. I told you, it seemed really personal yesterday when she was talking to me about Danny – like she was really upset with him about something. Maybe she and Vik were partners and he double-crossed her and now she's framing Danny to get back at him."

The girls drove away from the storefront and headed further into town, still discussing what they'd just learned. "You know, the other strange thing? That man said that Vikram and Marilyn closed up Marna about three months ago – but he's supposed to have been dead for six months…" Jo was talking through everything, trying to make sense of the conversation with the man. "so if he wasn't dead three months ago, he probably isn't dead now either – but where's he been hiding all this time and why'd he just up and leave his family like that right before Danny was supposed to get out of juvie? What the hell does all this mean, Lacey?"

"I don't know, Jo," the other girl said as they arrived at their next destination, "but I think this is the best place for us to try and find out."

Jo looked out the window, realizing they were at the apartment building where they'd discovered Regina's blackmail letters were coming from the night they came here with Danny.

"Do you really think this is a good idea?" Jo said, unbuckling her seatbelt reluctantly. "I mean, last time we were here we almost got caught and Danny was almost arrested for sneaking in."

"That's because we came at night and didn't know who or what we were looking for – now we do. We'll just walk in and past the doorman as if we live there or know exactly who we're going to see. It'll be fine as long as you don't give us away by looking super nervous and guilty," Lacey said confidently.

"I resent that," Jo grumbled, getting out of the car anyway, "and for the record, I think this is a very bad idea."

"Duly noted," Lacey responded, not deterred in the slightest as she strode to the front entrance of the building. She stopped before walking inside, waiting impatiently for Jo to catch up. "Would you please stop fidgeting! You look suspicious, and you're going to give us away."

"I can't help it that I'm the only one here with enough sense to worry about the probable negative outcomes of this situation," Jo shot back, defensive.

"Just relax," Lacey said, walking into the door with a smile on her face. "What in the world could possibly go wrong?"


	6. Chapter 6

The girls walked into the apartment building, easily bypassing security, and headed for the elevator. They got on and pressed the button to the floor they were looking for. Jo gently tapped her foot to the Muzak station playing throughout the car as they rose, much to Lacey's chagrin. Lacey gritted her teeth, readying herself to say something to Jo just as the signal bell dinged, alerting them that they'd reached their stop. The exited to elevator, taking a left down the hallway toward Vikram's apartment.

"Wait!" Jo said as Lacey reached to open the door. "What if someone's inside?"

"What are you talking about?" Lacey stage-whispered, "No one lives here – Danny was in the apartment the last time we were here. If it looked like someone lived here he would have told us."

"Well, what if someone moved in or just wasn't home at the time? What if we get caught? What if…"

Lacey grabbed Jo's shoulders, shaking her gingerly. "Pull it together Masterson – this is our best chance of getting info that could clear Danny, and I need you with me. No one is living here, we aren't going to get caught, we're good. Now breathe, relax, and let's do some breaking and entering."

At Jo's insistence the girls knocked lightly on the door before quietly entering. They were surprised that it was unlocked, until they remembered that Danny had broken in last time. Apparently no one had come to fix the broken lock, so they were able to enter easily and undetected. They walked in to find an almost empty apartment – it looked as if someone had packed up and left in a hurry, but had only taken the most important things with them. A sofa and coffee table remained, although it was caked with dust, indicating that it had been undisturbed for a very long time. Walking through the living room into the kitchen, they were greeted with much the same – a table with only two chairs, all covered with dust. Lacey walked toward the cabinets and drawers, opening each before slamming them shut again when she found them empty. Jo stood off to the side, watching as Lacey grew more and more aggravated with each empty drawer. Finally reaching the end, Lacey growled in frustration as she realized none of them held anything of use to them. She sank down on the floor, her hands pulling through her hair as she tried to think of what to do next. Jo turned away from her and walked into the bedroom, noting only a chair and chest of drawers in the large room. She looked through the drawers, unsurprised when she found nothing, and then sank into the chair.

"What are we even doing here?" she said aloud to no one in particular. "Did we really think we could save Danny?" She slammed her fist into the arm of the chair, growing more frustrated as the clasp of her bracelet caught on the upholstery, pulling free several threads. Jo fought with the material for a few moments, laughing at herself as she got more and more tangled. She tugged and tugged, eventually pulling herself free and miraculously managing to not damage her bracelet. She got up from the chair disgusted, stopping only as her eye caught sight of something white peeking through the hole she'd torn in the fabric.

Realizing that it was a piece of paper, she reached down, digging her fingers into the hole to pull it out. It was folded into a tight triangle, and it reminded Jo of the notes she and Lacey would pass to one another in class as children. She walked back in to the kitchen and sat down beside Lacey, showing her what she'd found.

"What's that?" Lacey said, staring dubiously at the little piece of paper. "We're going to play a game of paper football?"

"Not sure," Jo responded, ignoring Lacey's sarcasm. "I found it in the arm of the chair in the other room. Kind of looks like those notes we used to pass to each other in elementary school, right?"

"Yeah, I guess – what does it say?"

Jo shrugged her shoulders, pulling the folds of the paper apart to read what was inside. Her eyebrows knitted together as she read what was written there.

_**:30**_

_**:16**_

_**:42**_

_**:22**_

_**:36**_

_**:24**_

"It's just a set of numbers, but it looks like it was written by a kid," she said, looking up at Lacey in confusion. She handed the paper to Lacey, allowing her to read it. "Do those numbers mean anything to you?"

"Not really but… I think they're dates and times. See how there are single dots between the first numbers of each line, and then a colon between the second? I think it's telling dates and times of… something? What does this mean? And who wrote this?"

Jo's eyes grew wide as she put the pieces together in her head. "Danny wrote it!" she shook her head at Lacey's confused expression, continuing, "Danny wrote this. Look – that handwriting is clearly a kid's, and the dates… the last date here is just a few days before he killed Tara. I even remember teaching him how to fold like this! Don't you? It was about two or three weeks before everything happened, and he kept begging me to teach him how to fold like this because he was jealous that you and I could send secret messages to each other and he couldn't."

"Oh yeah," Lacey said, suddenly remembering, "he was so funny! I wonder why he put this list here, and what it means?"

"Not sure, but it looks like it has something to do with Tara… maybe this is the secret that he's been keeping about why he had to kill her? And what does that have to do with Regina now?" Jo pondered these questions lost in thought. Lacey looked at her sideways, deciding now was as good a time as any to tell her the truth.

"Jo," she began shakily, unsure of how the other girl would react, "I know why Danny killed Tara."

"What? What do you mean you know why Danny killed Tara? How could you possibly know a thing like that?"

"Because he wrote me a letter and gave it to me the night he left…" She searched Jo's eyes, losing some of her nerve as she saw the hurt there.

"It's always going to be you, isn't it? That is so not fair – I'm the one who stuck by him this whole time, I'm the one who's been trying to figure out how to get him back to some semblance of normalcy, and he still tells you his secret and not me?!"

"Jo," Lacey said, trying to comfort the girl, "it isn't like that. He said he was trying to protect you and I believe him. He just told me because I happened to be the last person to see him before he disappeared. And anyway, as usual you're missing the point. He told me he killed Tara because she was writing something about his father. It was an in-depth expose' about his links to corruption in the city. She was getting ready to turn evidence over to the state in exchange for the exclusive rights to publish the story first. She wanted to get famous, and she was going to take Vikram down to do it."

"Okay…" Jo said, trying to absorb that information from Lacey, "Okay, that seems plausible. But then what's with the dates? What do they mean?"

"Not sure, but we can figure that out later," Lacey said, looking at her watch, "I think we need to go ahead and get out of here now."

The girls walked toward the door, horrified as they realized a key was turning in the lock.

"Uh oh," Jo said, looking at Lacey in panic, "I guess we've got company."

"Hide!"


	7. Author's Note

Hey guys - just wanted to let you guys know I'm still alive and haven't abandoned you or my stories. I've had a really bad case of strep throat that had me down for the count for about a week, and then my partner and I broke up so I'm in the midst of moving... Needless to say I haven't had much of a chance to write lately. That said, I'm planning on coming back once I get moved and settled. Thanks for the PMs from everyone who checked on me - love you guys! Kio 


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